College Freshman Resume Examples + Writing Tips

What to put in a college freshman resume + examples

Every college freshman’s resume needs to have these five essential sections:

1. Contact information
2. Introduction statement
3. Education
4. Skills
5. Work experience

You can include additional sections like awards, certifications or volunteer work if relevant to the job.

1. Contact information

List your contact information in the header of your resume so it’s easily seen.

Include the following basic information:

• Your first and last name
• A professional email address
• Your phone number
• Your city/state location, e.g., [Dearborn, MI]

Adding your LinkedIn profile or a link to your portfolio (if applicable) is optional. However, it’s a good idea to include them if you think they’ll help show employers you’re right for the job!

2. Resume introduction statement

Resumes should begin with a few sentences explaining your top strengths and why an employer should hire you. There are two slightly different approaches to this:

1. A resume summary is best for candidates with previous work and volunteer experience. It summarizes your achievements in those roles.

2. A resume objective is better if you haven’t had many jobs or extracurricular work. It tends to focus on the skills you hope to grow rather than what you’ve achieved so far.

Since you’re a student, most employers understand that you’ve yet to develop professional experience, and it’s acceptable to prove your value by selling your academic accomplishments.

Here’s a good college freshman resume objective example:

“Motivated accounting student is dedicated with a great eye for detail and organizational skills. Hoping to deepen my research skills, process knowledge and professional experience with a summer finance internship.”

3. Education section

Since you’re a college freshman, education should be central to your life. It may benefit you to mention your field of study or the major of your degree in progress, especially if it’s aligned with the role. 

Put this section near the top of your resume and provide details like your expected graduation date, field of study and GPA.

Your education section should list the following information:

• College Name
• College’s city/state location
• Expected graduation date, month/year
• Your GPA (but only if >3.0)
• Academic honors and awards

Mentioning relevant coursework or classes you’ve taken is helpful when it shows you have background knowledge of the job or internship you’re applying for. Otherwise, you don’t need to mention it.

Here’s an example of a college freshman education section:

4. Work experience

Many college freshmen have limited work experience. Volunteer experience or short-term gigs are acceptable here, too. But if you’ve got jobs, use them! 

Here’s a college freshman work experience section:

You could also call it a “Relevant Experience” section if you have little paid work experience. Be honest and sell your passion, discipline and work ethic.

Here are examples of what you could include in this section:

• Internships
• Volunteer work
• Study abroad
• Extracurricular activities
• Hobbies and interests
• Student clubs
• Sport leadership positions

Here’s a college freshman's relevant experience example:

5. Skills 

A good skills section should highlight your top abilities that match employer needs.

It should also contain a balance of hard and soft skills.

We’ll explain each type so you can better include a mix:

Hard skills can be taught and measured. They're related to specific knowledge, tools or technical skills.

 Examples:

Soft skills are more about personality and how you interact with others. These interpersonal skills are often harder to measure but crucial for success and transferable to many jobs.

Examples:

Why both are necessary:

• Hard skills get you the job. They show you have the technical knowledge to do the work.
• Soft skills help you succeed in the job: They make you a good teammate, communicator and problem-solver.
• Developing both hard and soft skills can set you up for success in your academic and professional life.

College freshman resume example template

Here’s a sample college freshman resume template you can copy/paste. It’s in a functional format, which is best if you lack work experience because it emphasizes your skills.

If you want to give your resume a professional look, plug it into our Resume Builder. There are 25 preformatted designs, and you can change your resume's appearance in a single click!

College freshman resume template

College freshman resume writing tips

Now that we’ve covered the basics with some freshman in college resume examples, we’ll show you how to fine-tune your document's message!

Here are four crucial tips for writing a college freshman resume:

1. Read the job post or ad carefully.

The best clues about what the employer wants to see in your resume are in the job post or ad. The employer has listed their most essential needs and expectations here.

So, read it closely and identify any resume keywords that match your experience. Then, feature these exact keywords in your resume.

This is a crucial step because many companies use applicant tracking systems (ATS) to prescreen candidates. Employers program keywords to filter candidates; if your resume lacks the correct terms, a manager may never see it!

2. Fit your resume onto one page.

College freshman resumes should be one page because resume length comes down to experience level.

When you don’t have 10+ years of work experience, making your resume longer than one page may show employers that you don’t value their time and will be less impactful. 

Don’t make your resume too short either, like half a page. It’s good to leave some white space on your one-page resume and ensure it doesn’t look cluttered.

3. Choose the right resume format.

If you’ve looked online for resume designs, you may notice that they organize the same information differently. The way you organize your resume is also called a resume format. 

There are three main resume formats: functional, chronological and combination.

Functional or combination resumes are the best format for college freshmen. Chronological resumes are better for professionals with tons of work experience!

Generally, you should choose a combination format if you’ve been working for three or more years. If you have less experience than that, stick with a functional format.

4. Use action verbs and clear descriptions.

The language of your resume should leave the reader excited about you. Use as many action verbs as possible when writing your work experience bullet points. 

Action verbs paint a clearer and more vivid picture of what you’ve done to achieve success.

For instance, saying you “worked on” fundraising events sounds flat. It’s more powerful to say that you “spearheaded,” “led,” “oversaw” or “coordinated” fundraising efforts!

Here’s a cheat sheet of 30 action verbs to electrify your college freshman resume:

College freshman cover letter advice

Your resume is like an exam determining whether you get a job; a cover letter is its essay portion.

In it, you want to show thoughtfulness about why you deserve a job and are a good fit. A cover letter lets you express your personality better and tell a story about yourself that persuades employers to hire you.

If you want a helping hand, check out our Cover Letter Builder. It automates the whole writing process into a series of easy-to-follow prompts. 

Otherwise, we’ll outline how to write your cover letter from scratch next.

Before you start writing your letter, it’s helpful to brainstorm your message. You could get some ideas by reviewing our cover letter examples.

We also have great cover letter templates if you don’t know how to format a cover letter!

Once you’re ready to write, try to achieve the following:

• Start your cover letter by mentioning your desired role, how you heard about it, and why you deserve it the most. 
• Mention the top skills and abilities that benefit the employer.
• Your letter's middle paragraph(s) should tell a story about your achievement or how you overcame a challenge using your problem-solving skills.

Use the final paragraph to restate your interest in the position and the value you provide, thank the reader for their time, and express interest in meeting.